As the Third Raikage's body collapsed, revealing the gaping hole in his chest, Ai's anguished roar echoed across the battlefield like Lightning.
Guts casually flicked the blood from his hand, not even sparing a glance at the fallen Raikage. His crimson eyes locked onto Ai.
With that, he began striding toward the Fourth Raikage without hesitation.
"Retreat! Retreat immediately!!"
Dodai's voice cut through the chaos. With the fall of their leader, the Cloud Shinobi forces plunged into disarray.
Dodai understood the weight of the moment. This wasn't just the loss of a man—it was the shattering of morale, the end of their will to fight.
Their army was broken. Their war was over.
On the Konoha side, Shisui was quick to seize the moment.
"Now's our chance! Everyone, charge!!"
The cry reinvigorated the Konoha forces. Like a wave building behind a dam, their morale surged. Swords were raised, jutsu were launched, and battle cries filled the skies.
What moments ago had been a tense standoff erupted into a full-blown rout.
"Ai! Don't lose yourself! Retreat now!"
Dodai's voice reached through Ai's grief and rage. Ai stood trembling, his eyes locked on Guts's advancing form.
But war didn't wait for emotions to settle.
He clenched his fists, tears brimming in his eyes as he burned Guts's face into his memory.
"Withdraw!" he finally roared.
With that, the Cloud Shinobi began to flee in full retreat. Even the Third Raikage's body was left behind, forgotten in the chaos.
Guts paused, raising an eyebrow at the sight of them running. Then, a strange pressure began to radiate from him.
His hands slowly stretched outward.
A Red Lightningous burst of pressure swept across the battlefield like an invisible tsunami.
The shockwave wasn't physical, it was will made manifest.
Cloud Shinobi fell like wheat to a scythe. Even some of the weaker Konoha Chūnin and Genin collapsed, eyes rolling back, fainting on the spot.
Shisui, though an elite Chūnin, felt a sharp ringing in his skull and quickly flared his chakra to stay conscious.
When the dust settled, bodies littered the field.
"Still not used to that," Guts muttered with a shrug. "Guess I'll need to practice."
Then, without the slightest hint of remorse, he waved his hand.
"Kill every Cloud Shinobi still on the ground."
The Konoha shinobi, shaken but obedient, raised their kunai and blades.
And executed the fallen.
"Bastard!!" Ai turned, his eyes bloodshot with fury as he watched helplessly from a distance.
He wanted to charge back, wanted to rip Guts apart.
But Dodai grabbed his shoulder firmly.
"Calm down, Ai! We're in no shape to fight again. With Lord Raikage gone, we need to return to the village. You… you're the new Fourth Raikage now."
Ai clenched his jaw until it hurt.
The rage he couldn't release turned into a guttural roar, echoing across the valley as the broken remnants of the Cloud army retreated to the Land of Lightning.
In the command tent of Konoha's frontline base, Guts lounged lazily in a chair, one leg over the other.
Shisui entered briskly, a scroll in hand, his face beaming.
"Teacher! It's official—we've secured a major victory. Konoha lost less than two hundred shinobi. The Cloud Shinobi, over a thousand casualties."
Guts gave a slow stretch and yawned.
"Mm. Guess that counts as a big win."
Shisui blinked, puzzled.
"You don't seem too thrilled. Is it because of… White Fang?"
He trailed off, worried he'd gone too far.
But Guts's expression didn't change.
"Even if he were still alive, I'd feel the same."
Konoha's victory or defeat didn't matter much to Guts. What truly pleased him was unlocking Conqueror's Haki and raising Garp's completion rate past 50%.
"Teacher, what are your orders now?" Shisui asked, bringing the topic back to the mission.
"Draft a report to that old man, the Third Hokage," Guts said.
"Tell him the Lightning front is handled. Most of the Cloud army will have to fall back and fortify their homeland. That'll free up our side to shift focus."
Guts leaned back, arms behind his head.
"I spent nearly a year in this damn warzone. Didn't mean to learn anything—but turns out, I picked up a few things."
A hawk landed gracefully on the window of Konoha's Intelligence Division.
A Chūnin gently removed the scroll tied to its leg. His eyes widened the moment he saw the seal.
Urgent report from the Lightning front.
He sprinted down the corridor, straight to the Hokage's office.
Inside, Sarutobi Hiruzen and Jiraiya sat with the village elders, discussing the next phase of the war.
"Lord Hokage! Urgent news from the front!" the Chūnin shouted, bursting in.
Sarutobi took the scroll and opened it swiftly.
His hands paused. His eyes froze.
"Sarutobi-sensei?" Jiraiya asked, concern deepening in his voice. "What is it?"
The Third Hokage took a slow, deep breath, then said solemnly:
"The Third Raikage… is dead."
The room fell into stunned silence.
Even the usually composed Koharu and Homura looked shaken.
"Dead? The strongest Raikage?"
Jiraiya frowned, disbelief tightening his features.
"Even White Fang and Sarutobi-sensei would've struggled against him…"
"Who… who did it?" Koharu asked, almost not wanting to know the answer.
Hiruzen gave her a look.
"White Fang is gone. So tell me—who do you think could do it?"
Jiraiya's eyes widened. He could already picture the answer.
Hiruzen nodded slowly and exhaled through his pipe.
"A new [Konoha's White Fang] has been born. Maybe the heavens are smiling on Konoha after all."
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